


Together Again

by Mark_C



Category: The Greatest American Hero
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-09
Updated: 2013-12-09
Packaged: 2018-01-04 04:07:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1076346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mark_C/pseuds/Mark_C
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been several years since 'the little green guys' gave Ralph and Bill the suit.  There have been some changes in their lives since.  What are they up to now?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Together Again

**Author's Note:**

  * For [damos](https://archiveofourown.org/users/damos/gifts).



> Disclaimer: The characters are owned by Stephen J. Cannell and ABC.
> 
> AN: I would like to thank htbthomas for being my beta for this story.

Opening the closet for a change of clothes to go out with his wife Pam for dinner, Ralph noticed a familiar black case which had not been opened for a time. It also made him think about the changes that had been made in their lives over recent years.

Pam had her own law firm for several years, which came about with Ralph’s encouragement and a _suit_ -involved caper. Despite that fact, Pam was ready for that challenge and her firm had become very successful.

As for Ralph, he was still at Whitney High but he no longer taught Special Ed and that was not due to him not getting tenure those years ago. Through the hard work he put in with his students like Tony Villicana to turn them around, the school board recognized this and made him vice principal. A few years later after Mr. Knight was transferred, Ralph took over as principal. Just like with Pam’s firm, the school under Ralph’s leadership flourished and he could not be more proud of that accomplishment.

His thoughts then drifted to a good friend that came out of receiving that other worldly case. That person came in the form of Bill Maxwell, and FBI agent. It had been fifteen years since Ralph was entrusted with what was inside that case and their lives changed.

Opening the case like he had that very first time, he saw the red suit -- or the magic jammies as Bill had dubbed them -- lying inside. Looking at that suit brought back a lot of memories and a smile along with them.

“Ralph, you need to get ready or we’ll miss…” Pam came out of the bathroom to see her husband with the red suit. “You all right, sweetheart?”

Giving her a slight smile, Ralph closed the case. “I’m fine, Pam. That suit holds a lot of fond memories for me, us. It still amazes me after all this time that I was given this suit and Bill as a partner. No matter what kind of case or problem that we faced, we always found a way to solve it. It made me feel good to be making a difference.”

“You and Bill certainly did.”

“Not just Bill and I, Pamela, you were a big part of it as well.”

“True, I was pretty good at being your third-string backup.”

They laughed at that phrase that Bill coined to describe Pam’s involvement in their suit-related activities.

Putting the case on the bed, Ralph went to his wife and grasped both of her hands. “Pam, you did a lot more than that.”

Pam decided to change the topic, despite the fact that her husband was right. “Have you heard from Bill lately?”

“Not in the last couple of weeks. He’s been pretty busy up in DC.”

Bill had been working out of the nation’s capital for the past few years. His record in Los Angeles had gotten him noticed by the higher ups in the Bureau out in Washington. Of course he wanted Ralph and the suit to go with him. It was tough for Ralph to turn his friend down but there was no logical reason to uproot him and Pam’s lives to go to Washington with Bill. Luckily they came up with a solution with Ralph using the suit to fly DC when he was able and work on cases that Bill termed a ‘suit problem’.

When they had the time, Ralph and Pam would visit Bill and some of those visits would include the use of the jammies. It was those times that they had the most fun because the three of them were together again.

“You know Ralph, with the school year almost over and things at the firm under control, maybe we can head to DC for a visit to see how good ol’ uncle Bill is.”

“That sounds like a wonderful idea, honey,” replied Ralph as he closed the case and put the suit back in the closet. “We better hurry or we’ll lose our reservation.”

*****

_A few weeks later_

Ralph and Pam’s plan to see Bill came to fruition rather quickly. With their respective schedules cleared, it did not take them long to book a flight to Washington DC. The flight was an early morning one so that they could arrive in the early afternoon.

This all made Ralph rather happy because he was more than able to fly both himself and Pam with the suit but a change of clothes would be at a bare minimum.

As plane took off, Ralph told Pam, “This is the only way to fly.”

They both laughed. Even though Ralph’s flying had gotten better over the years there were still times that his landings were not of two-point variety.

During the flight, they decided that they would see Bill the following day just to give themselves time to recover from the trip and do a little sightseeing. They had both been to the nation’s capital a few times but with not enough time to explore what the great city had to offer. Therefore, this time would be different.

The flight was over five and a half hours but uneventful. After they disembarked and found their luggage, they hailed a cab to take them to their hotel.

“Does Bill know that we’re here?” Pam asked once they were settled in their hotel room.

Ralph swiftly answered, “No, but I did tell him that we were thinking about it the last time I talked to him a couple of weeks ago.”

“I hope he doesn’t mind us showing up out of the blue.”

“Once he sees us, he’ll probably ask if I have the suit and have a case to use it for.”

Pam nodded in agreement... Every time they ventured out of Los Angeles the suit was either with Ralph -- or Bill had to bring it to him. “That certainly wouldn’t be a surprise.” 

“It would be just like old times,” commented Ralph. “You ready to explore this great city and get something to eat?”

Nodding in reply, Pam grabbed her purse.

*****

The following day, Pam and Ralph decided it would be best to see Bill sometime in the early evening since it would be their best chance to catch him at his place instead of going over to the Bureau’s office. With the aid of the suit, Ralph ‘vibed’ off Bill’s door knob to make sure that their friend was inside. To their relief he was and so they knocked on the door.

“Who is it?” Bill asked gruffly.

Ralph smiled widely. “A beach bum and his mouth piece are here to see a good friend of theirs.”

“Kid?” Opening his door, he was greeted by the sight of Ralph and Pam. “Counselor, what are you guys doing here?”

Ushering them inside, Bill shook Ralph’s hand and gave him a manly embrace. Pam added a kiss on his cheek.

“We finally got the free time to come up to see you.” Ralph joined his wife on the couch in the living room.

Taking a look around the place, Ralph noticed that Bill’s apartment looked almost to the same as his old one back in LA. A shared look with Pam told him that she was thinking the same thing. 

“It’s good to see you guys because it’s been too long,” Bill told them with a slight smile. He would never admit it but Bill did miss them. “There’s something that I would like to tell ya and it’s better to do it in person.”

“We’re all ears, Bill,” said Ralph.

“I’ve been thinkin’ about moving back to LA.”

That news brought smiles to the faces of both Ralph and Pam. “That’s wonderful, Bill. If there is anything we can do to help, you let us know,” Pam told him.

“The reason why I’m moving back to LA is because I’m planning on retiring from the Bureau.”

Ralph and Pam were stunned to say the least. They knew that one day this would happen because it was a simple fact of life. Still, it was a surprise. What seemed like minutes of silence passed. Pam was the first to ask, “Are you sure you want to do that?”

Ralph followed his wife with a query of his own, “Why?”

Bill answered with what sounded to be a heavy heart, “I think it’s time. And I want to go back to Los Angeles.”

“You know, Bill, that you can always ask to be transferred back.”

“If you need some legal advice about that, I’d be glad to help any way I can. There is no legal reason why the FBI would not allow you to transfer.”

“Thanks for the offer, Counselor but it’s not that,” Bill replied.

Ralph sat forward on the couch. “What is it about then, Bill?”

“As you both know, I’m not as young as I used to be. Plus I can’t always rely on Ralph and the suit to save the day.”

“You’ve been doing that for a while here, Bill.” Pam placed a hand on his arm. “Is that the only thing that’s making you contemplate retiring?”

“I’ve also had a couple of close calls lately, not reacting as quickly as I once did. Not being sharp can get either myself or a partner killed out in the field.”

“What about a desk job?” Ralph asked even though he probably knew what the answer would be.

“It had crossed my mind but I’m a field man, kid. Riding a desk just ain’t my style.”

“You know, Bill, Ralph and I will support you in any decision you make. We also hope that you’re not making a hasty judgment.”

“Thanks, guys. Enough of this talk – I’ve made my decision. Have you had dinner yet?” They shook their heads. Bill continued, “Good, I know this place not too far from here that makes a great steak.”

“Sounds great,” Ralph replied along with an affirmative nod from Pam.

In no time they left Bill’s apartment for dinner. But all evening, Ralph and Pam’s thoughts kept going back to Bill’s impending retirement.

*****

In the weeks that followed, Ralph and Pam gave Bill whatever assistance he needed for his return to LA. The week they were in DC, Bill talked to his superiors about retiring. They were surprised to hear that news because Bill had done an excellent job during his time in Washington, but they accepted his request. 

Bill was the next one to be surprised. Since he had mentioned that he was returning to California, they requested that Bill finish his time in the Bureau out there. If he changed his mind about retiring, he could continue his service from the LA branch. 

It wasn’t long before Bill was back, permanently, in Los Angeles. His apartment was not like the old one but he did have more room. The only saving grace was that it certainly looked like a place for Bill Maxwell could call home. A better thing about being back in LA was working with Carlisle again. Finding his old sparring partner was still there brought a smile to his face.

Another thing that made Bill happy was being able to work with Ralph and suit on a regular basis again. Since it was summer, Ralph was more available. Pam contributed just like she used to -- that brought a nostalgic feeling to good old Uncle Bill.

Ralph was even enjoying using the suit more often and that was a statement in itself. In a way, not working with Bill for so long made using the suit feel somehow different. 

As the days neared to Bill’s retirement, both Ralph and Pam wondered if their friend would go through with it.

“You ready for lunch, Bill?” Ralph asked as he and Pam approached his desk.

“Just a second,” replied Bill as he put the finishing touches on some paperwork. A colleague came by, handed Bill a slip of paper and whispered something in his ear. “Kid, it looks like lunch will have to wait. I just got a tip about where those gun smugglers are and they are about to unload them. Do you have the…?”

Ralph looked around, saw everyone was busy and showed Bill that he was wearing the suit.

“Let’s go then, you too, Counselor,” Bill stated as he grabbed his coat as they headed for his car.

Once there, Ralph hastily took off his clothes and passed them off to Pam.

“You got the address, kid, just talk us in when you get there,” Bill told his partner as he gave him the communicator.

Ralph gave him an affirmative nod, slipped the communicator into his sleeve, took three steps and was off in the air. Unbeknownst to Pam and Bill, Ralph had a small smile on his face as he left.

Shortly thereafter, Bill and Pam followed. It was too bad that they were going to miss their lunch because Bill was going to tell them that he had changed his mind and decided not to retire. Being back in LA with Ralph, Pam and the suit re-energized him. 

Within a few minutes, Ralph relayed directions to Bill -- they were not far behind him. “I can see two men entering—” His words were interrupted by a crash. Ralph must have just ‘made an entrance’ through the roof of the gun smuggler’s warehouse. The situation was about to get out of hand. Bill put the pedal to the metal. 

Arriving at the site, Bill hastily got out of the car and told Pam, “Stay in the car, Counselor.”

Bill and Pam both jumped at the sounds of gunfire, Pam nodded her agreement quickly.

Once inside, Bill could see Ralph fighting a small group of men and taking several shots. One by one, he was able to either toss them around, bend their weapons to make them useless and tie them up or just knock them unconscious.

Three men suddenly approached Bill. “Freeze right there,” Bill said, lifting his gun and badge. “Maxwell, FBI -- you’re all under arrest.”

“There’s only one of you. What makes you think you can take us?” asked one of the men.

“My friend over there,” stated Bill. He let them watch a moment as Ralph bent automatic rifles into handcuffs. Once he had their attention back, he continued, “So if you would get on your knees, hands behind your head, everything will be all right. One word of advice, I wouldn’t mention my friend over there — unless you’d enjoy a visit to the rubber room.”

With order restored, Bill gestured to Ralph to take off. He did, right through an upper window.

A couple of hours later, finally outside the restaurant, Bill put an arm around Ralph, then Pam. “Kids, I got a little something to tell you…”

The old crime-solving trio was together again.

**The End**


End file.
